431 research outputs found
Fermion mixing in quasi-free states
Quantum field theoretic treatments of fermion oscillations are typically
restricted to calculations in Fock space. In this letter we extend the
oscillation formulae to include more general quasi-free states, and also
consider the case when the mixing is not unitary.Comment: 10 pages, Plain Te
Quantizing the damped harmonic oscillator
We consider the Fermi quantization of the classical damped harmonic
oscillator (dho). In past work on the subject, authors double the phase space
of the dho in order to close the system at each moment in time. For an
infinite-dimensional phase space, this method requires one to construct a
representation of the CAR algebra for each time. We show that unitary dilation
of the contraction semigroup governing the dynamics of the system is a logical
extension of the doubling procedure, and it allows one to avoid the
mathematical difficulties encountered with the previous method.Comment: 4 pages, no figure
Engineered nonlinear lattices
We show that with the quasi-phase-matching technique it is possible to fabricate stripes of nonlinearity that trap and guide light like waveguides. We investigate an array of such stripes and find that when the stripes are sufficiently narrow, the beam dynamics is governed by a quadratic nonlinear discrete equation. The proposed structure therefore provides an experimental setting for exploring discrete effects in a controlled manner. In particular, we show propagation of breathers that are eventually trapped by discreteness. When the stripes are wide the beams evolve in a structure we term a quasilattice, which interpolates between a lattice system and a continuous system.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version
Spatially valid proprioceptive cues improve the detection of a visual stimulus
Vision and proprioception are the main sensory modalities that convey hand location and direction of movement. Fusion of these sensory signals into a single robust percept is now well documented. However, it is not known whether these modalities also interact in the spatial allocation of attention, which has been demonstrated for other modality pairings. The aim of this study was to test whether proprioceptive signals can spatially cue a visual target to improve its detection. Participants were instructed to use a planar manipulandum in a forward reaching action and determine during this movement whether a near-threshold visual target appeared at either of two lateral positions. The target presentation was followed by a masking stimulus, which made its possible location unambiguous, but not its presence. Proprioceptive cues were given by applying a brief lateral force to the participantâs arm, either in the same direction (validly cued) or in the opposite direction (invalidly cued) to the on-screen location of the mask. The dâČ detection rate of the target increased when the direction of proprioceptive stimulus was compatible with the location of the visual target compared to when it was incompatible. These results suggest that proprioception influences the allocation of attention in visual spac
Numerical Study of Quantum Resonances in Chaotic Scattering
This paper presents numerical evidence that for quantum systems with chaotic
classical dynamics, the number of scattering resonances near an energy
scales like as . Here, denotes
the subset of the classical energy surface which stays bounded for
all time under the flow generated by the Hamiltonian and denotes
its fractal dimension. Since the number of bound states in a quantum system
with degrees of freedom scales like , this suggests that the
quantity represents the effective number of degrees of
freedom in scattering problems.Comment: 24 pages, including 44 figure
Algebraic Model for scattering of three-s-cluster systems. II. Resonances in the three-cluster continuum of 6He and 6Be
The resonance states embedded in the three-cluster continuum of 6He and 6Be
are obtained in the Algebraic Version of the Resonating Group Method. The model
accounts for a correct treatment of the Pauli principle. It also provides the
correct three-cluster continuum boundary conditions by using a Hyperspherical
Harmonics basis. The model reproduces the observed resonances well and achieves
good agreement with other models. A better understanding for the process of
formation and decay of the resonance states in six-nucleon systems is obtained.Comment: 8 pages, 10 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Second order perturbation theory for embedded eigenvalues
We study second order perturbation theory for embedded eigenvalues of an
abstract class of self-adjoint operators. Using an extension of the Mourre
theory, under assumptions on the regularity of bound states with respect to a
conjugate operator, we prove upper semicontinuity of the point spectrum and
establish the Fermi Golden Rule criterion. Our results apply to massless
Pauli-Fierz Hamiltonians for arbitrary coupling.Comment: 30 pages, 2 figure
A complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor compatible monocantilever 12-point probe for conductivity measurements on the nanoscale
Localization of shadow poles by complex scaling
Through numerical examples we show that the complex scaling method is suited
to explore the pole structure in multichannel scattering problems. All poles
lying on the multisheeted Riemann energy surface, including shadow poles, can
be revealed and the Riemann sheets on which they reside can be identified.Comment: 6 pages, Latex with Revtex, 3 figures (not included) available on
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Ethnobotanical knowledge is vastly under-documented in northwestern South America
A main objective of ethnobotany is to document traditional knowledge about plants before it disappears. However, little is known about the coverage of past ethnobotanical studies and thus about how well the existing literature covers the overall traditional knowledge of different human groups. To bridge this gap, we investigated ethnobotanical data-collecting efforts across four countries (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia), three ecoregions (Amazon, Andes, ChocĂł), and several human groups (including Amerindians, mestizos, and Afro-Americans). We used palms (Arecaceae) as our model group because of their usefulness and pervasiveness in the ethnobotanical literature. We carried out a large number of field interviews (n = 2201) to determine the coverage and quality of palm ethnobotanical data in the existing ethnobotanical literature (n = 255) published over the past 60 years. In our fieldwork in 68 communities, we collected 87,886 use reports and documented 2262 different palm uses and 140 useful palm species. We demonstrate that traditional knowledge on palm uses is vastly under-documented across ecoregions, countries, and human groups. We suggest that the use of standardized data-collecting protocols in wide-ranging ethnobotanical fieldwork is a promising approach for filling critical information gaps. Our work contributes to the Aichi Biodiversity Targets and emphasizes the need for signatory nations to the Convention on Biological Diversity to respond to these information gaps. Given our findings, we hope to stimulate the formulation of clear plans to systematically document ethnobotanical knowledge in northwestern South America and elsewhere before it vanishesThis study was funded by the European Union, 7th Framework Programme (contract no. 212631), the Russel E. Train Education for Nature Program of
the WWF (to NPZ), the Anne S. Chatham fellowship of the Garden Club of America (to NPZ), and the Universidad AutĂłnoma de Madrid travel grants programme
(to RCL
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